Method of making striped textile fabric



United States Patent METHOD or MAKING STRIPED TEXTILE FABRIC No Drawing. Application September 4, 1952, Serial No. 307,926

1 Claim. (Cl. 8-14) This invention relates to dyed fabrics and more particularly to a new methodof producing a striped pattern in dyed textile fabrics, without employing a printing operation.

Striped patterns in textiles are usually obtained by a printing operation in which a dye paste is printed on the surface of the fabric, by means of an engraved printing roll. The printing machine is massive and expensive. Also, the printed cloth is usually non-reversible in use because the printing is done on one side and the printed pattern shows up properly on the printed side only. Although printing can be effected on both sides of the cloth, it calls for a dual operation and involves the problem of having the patterns on the opposite sides of the cloth exactly coincide.

In the case of a single color stripe pattern, the stripes carrying the color are engraved ,intaglio on a copper print roller, and the stripes which are'to be left white are not engraved, but remain as the raised portions of the print roller. The print roller revolves against a furnisher roll, which applies the dye paste to the entire surface of the roller. Before the cloth comes in contact with the roller, a doctor blade with a bevelled edge scrapes the dye paste from the raised stripes, leaving the dye paste in the engraved stripes to be printed, under pressure, onto the cloth. After printing, the cloth is dried and finished in the usual way.

Where a two-color or multi-color stripe. pattern is desired, a separate engraved print roller is used for each color printed in the pattern, though each color is printed in the same operation. In these two-color or multi-color printing operations, it is quite difficult and often impossible to keep the stripes in exact fit across the pattern.

Other stripe pattern effects are conventionally produced by dyeing the cloth a solid color and then, by a separate operation, printing a stripe or stripes onto the cloth by the conventional printing procedure. This is commonly known as overprinting. This procedure is very limited due to the fact that the shade of the overprint stripe is affected by the color underneath.

In all of these conventional printing operations, which use an engraved copper print roller with recessed (intaglio) stripes, it is well known that pressure of the printing roller against the cloth alone will not transfer the dye paste from the roller to the cloth satisfactorily. The print roller must be revolved against a cushioned surface under substantial pressure and the cloth passed between this cushioned surface and the print roller, in order that the transfer of the dye paste to the cloth can be achieved with any degree of satisfaction. The conventional print machine has for this cushioned surface a cylinder, either rubber covered or covered with lapping, and usually a rubber or canvas blanket is used on top of this.

In accordance with the present invention, we have discovered a simple, inexpensive method of dyeing fabrics that avoids the problems and limitations of the usual printing operations, above described, and nevertheless produces striped patterns on the fabrics and in sharp colors on both faces thereof such that the fabrics are reversible in use. This new method is fundamentally diiferent from the above-mentioned conventional procedures in that it does not require use of the conventional engraved printing roll, associated pressure roll, rubber blankets, and other expensive equipment commonly used in printing. All this equipment and its complicated operation have been eliminated and substituted by a markedly simple and effective method of applying a plurality of streams of a thin aqueous solution-as contrasted with the usual thick printing paste-to produce white or colored longitudinal stripes in the fabric, and immediately following this striping operation, saturating the entire fabric with a thin aqueous solution that prevents migration of the striping solution in the fabric and simultaneously dyes the remaining portions of the fabric either white or colored,

as desired.

Pursuant to a commercially advantageous embodiment of our invention, we first apply to the fabric, across the width thereof, a plurality of separated stripes, of any desired width, of an aqueous solution which serves either (a) to dye the stripe a desired color and/or (b) to resist dyeing of these striped areas by the subsequently applied dyestuff solution which dyes all of the remaining portions of the fabric. In either event, the method is carried out so that there is no bleeding of color between the striped areas and the remainder of the fabric. This is made possible and the operation practical and successful, by following the striping operation immediately with the dyeing of the other areas of the fabric; that is, immediately saturating the striped fabric with the thin liquid solution of the dyestufi so that the solution which has been applied to form the stripe will not have an opportunity to migrate into the other areas of the cloth and those areas will be saturated immediately by the dyestufii solution.

In a typical commercial example for production of striped cotton broadcloth fabric suitable for shirting material and mens shorts, the broadcloth is tensioned over a plurality of spaced rotating wheels or disks having smooth peripheral surfaces that carry the thin liquid solution of'dyestuif or dye resist from a bath in which they dip to the restricted areas of the cloth in contact with the periphery of the disks. The web of cloth is moved across the periphery of these rotating disks at a different speed from that of the disks so that there is a wiping action between the cloth and the top surfaces of the disks. In this manner, the liquid is removed from the surface of the disks and is immediately absorbed into the areas of the cloth corresponding substantially to the width or thickness of the disks, and thereby a lineor stripe is produced on the cloth by each disk. The plurality of disks used may be arranged in any desired manner as to width and spacing, and the peripheries of some or all of the disks may be notched to produce discontinuous stripes in the cloth or varying line designs.

The liquid so applied to the cloth may be a dye resist in the form of water alone or Water to which a small amount of a water soluble inert thickening material, such as algin, has been added to facilitate control of the amount of water carried by the disks and the absorption of the water in the cloth.

In the event a solid, thickening material is added to the water, it should be present in controlled small amounts such that the aqueous solution will easily and quickly penetrate the cloth that is brought into contact with the water carrying disks. An example of an aqueous solution that has been found commercially satisfactory is water containing about 0.5% to 1% sodium alginate. This has a slight effect on the viscosity of the water, and in a typical case would provide a viscosity in the aqueous solution of about 35 centipoise at room temperature. In

I l atented Feb. 1, 1956 3 other words, the amount of solid material added is definitely not sufficient to form a paste or anything similar to a paste in viscosity or thickness, but instead leaves the aqueous solution in a very thin, fluid, penetrative form.

'InE-he productiono'f the above-mentioned striped broadcloth, the aqueous solution that is used for producing the striped areas on the cloth would be in the form of a dye resist where it is desired to produce non-colored or substantially white stripes. Depending upon the effectiveness of the resist solution, the stripes produced thereby would either be white-or of a lighter tone than the base color which "is to be applied to the remainder of the cloth. 'The above-mentioned water alone, or aqueous solution of water with a slight amount of sodium 'alginate therein, will serve effectively as a resist in the striped areas, for the subsequently applied dyestuff. if, for example, the latter is blue, the stripes or lines apreviously produced on the cloth will be either white or a substantially reduced shadeof blue, which would appear white or slightly gray 'incharacter, as desired. By saturating the cloth with the dyestuif solution immediately, that is, in the *order of a fraction of a second after the stripes have been applied, the 'liquiddyestuif is absorbed into the cloth forthwith and "prevents the remaining unstriped areas of the cloth from absorbing the dye resist, and dyes those areas of the cloth the desired color, forexample, a solid blue.

Dyeing of the unstriped portions of the fabric may be carried out on a continuous dyeing machine wherein the dyestuff solution is continuously padded on the moving webof cloth and the usual drying, soaping and other finishing operations performed in sequence. If it is desired to produce 'a-striped patter-n such as described above except tha'tthe striped areas are dyed a color in contrast to the remaining dyed areas of the cloth, the operation will be carried out exactly as before, except that the solution applied by the rotating disks will be a dye solution, preferably of the thin water-soluble type. This dyestuff solution will provide colored stripes on the cloth instead of white stripes. For that purpose, thedye solution that is applied by the disks to provide the stripes, may be the same type of dyestuff, except of a different color, as the dyestuff that is subsequently applied for dyeing the remaining unstriped portions of the fabric.

Various modifications of the two procedures described above are contemplated within the scope of this invention. 'For example, there may be any desired number of different colored stripes applied to the fabric by having the separated rotating disks, or the like, provide a different colored dyestuff for each of the stripes or for different groups of the stripes. In other words, there may be, say, two or three different colors for the stripes that are reproduced in reoccurring groups across the width of the fabric, or each stripe may be of a distinctly different color if desired. Similarly, dye resists might be applied to some of the striped areas and dye solutions to the other striped areas, so that the resulting stripes in the final cloth would be white in some instances and colored in other instances. Similarly, the solution that is applied secondly to the entire cloth may be a dye resist solution, or a dyestuff solution with the color omitted, so that the unstriped areas would remain White or be of a lower color tone.

instead of the plain water or slightly viscous water, described above for the striping dye resist solution, an aqueous solution that would provide even stronger dye resist properties could be used to produce White or substantially white striped areas on the cloth. Typical examples of these stronger resist solutions would be aqueous solutions of water-soluble synthetic resins, e. g., urea formaldehyde or melamine formaldehyde resins, conventionally used in the textile art for providing different finishes. Likewise, combinations of the above-described aqueous solutions and resin solutions could be employed to obtain a strong resist. A typical example of such would be an 4 aqueous solution of sodium alginate and water-soluble melamine formaldehyde resin.

Illustrative but non-limiting examples of the resist and dyestuif solutions, and their applications to the fabrics, are as follows, it being understood that this invention is not limited to these formulas or procedures and is subject to various modifications thereof including the use of various other types of dyestuffs such as vat dyes, direct dyes, acid dyes, e'tc.

EXAMPLE 1 The stripeis applied byifirstpassing the cloth at a speed of yards per minute over a unit consisting of a series of driven, separated wheels or disk's, the surface speed of which is approximately 35 yards per minute. These disks rotate in a bath consisting of the following aqueous solution and apply it to the areas of the cloth in contact with the periphery of each disk.

Striping solution 8 oz. sodium alginate 1O gals. water Temperature-100 .F. (approx After the cloth is thus striped with this solution it immediately passes into a two roll padder, operating with approximately six tons pressure, where the following dyestuff is applied:

saturating solution '[100 ga1s.--1 2l) Fl] Pounds Cib'a'none Brown :BGN double paste, Color .Index No. 1152- I 2.90 Indant hrene Brown paste, :Color Index No.

11 51 .90 Indanthrene-Brown B I paste,:PR-1:18 .10 Caustic (50%)andc 12. Sodium hydrosulphite 6.

Following saturation ofthe cloth with this dyestuff solution, the c lothpasses through a series of units for reduction, rinsing, oxidation, and soaping.

In the following "Examples II through V, the same equipment and procedure discussed under Example I above are used. The respective solutions for first striping the cloth and then saturating it are varied, as indicated, to provide different striped dyed patterns.

EXAMPLE "II Striping solution 8 oz. sodium .alginate .10 gals. water v p H Temperature-100 .F. (.Approx.)

Saturating solution [.100 gals.- F. l

Sodium nitrite 1. Caustic (50%) .05

Saturatlng solution [100 gals.160 F.]

Pounds Indigosol Blue IBC, Color Index No. 1113 .40 Indigosol Brown IBR, PR 118 .32 5 Indigosol Purple IR .11 Sodium nitri 6. DeHagen III (thiourea) 1.50 Triton W-30, sodium iso-octyl phenoxy ethyl sulfate 5 EXAMPLE IV Striping solution [10 gals.120 F.] Pounds 1D Indigosol Green IBA, Color Index No. 1101 .62 Crystal Urea .31 Caustic (50%) .12 Sodium nitrite 1. Sodium alginate 50.

Saturating solution 100 gals.160 F.]

Pounds Sodium nitrite 12. Crystal urea 6.

EXAMPLE V Striping solution 8 oz. sodium alginate 10 gals. water Temperature-400 F. (Approx.)

saturating solution [100 gals.120 ll.]

Pounds Carbanthrene Blue BCF Double Flakes, Color Index No. 1113 3.10 Ponsol Violet BNX paste .50 Indanthrene Olive TA paste, PR 547 .35

The cloth is then overdyed continuously with following formula on the two roll padder:

[100 gals.-120 F.]

Pounds Indanthrene Olive TA paste, PR 547 2.60 Ponsol BNX Paste, Color Index No. 1163 .77

Carbanthrene Blue BCF Double Flakes, Color Index No. 1113 .39

speed of the cloth to the speed of the disks may vary within the range of about 3 to 1 and 1 to 1.

The method of this invention as described above is particularly characterized by the use of thin liquid solutions for dyeing the fabric the desired base color and for producing the separated longitudinal lines or stripes which are either white or contrasting color, as desired, and which run throughout the length of the fabric. The method is further characterized by the uniform and thorough impregnation of all of the fibers of the fabric with the dyestutf solutions and with the dyestulf resist solutions which are used for creating the different patterns. This thorough impregnation of the fibers, as distinct from the surface or one-side coating commonly produced with a printing roll operation, results from the use of the thin dyestuif and resist solutions as above-mentioned.

Following striping of the cloth with the resist or dyestutt solution and then immediately saturating the cloth with the desired base color, the saturated wet cloth is run between a pair of press rolls such as those commonly used with a dye pad on a continuous dyeing machine, to remove the excess liquid and effect uniform penetration of the liquid through the fabric. The usual soaping and other conventional finishing operations may then be applied to the cloth.

The apparatus features of this invention are described and claimed in separate copending application Serial No. 330,142, filed Ian. 7, 1953, the method being disclosed more particularly and claimed in this application.

The scope of the present invention is indicated in the appended claim.

We claim:

A method of producing a striped cotton broadcloth fabric comprising moving a web of said fabric across the periphery of a plurality of spaced rotating disks, applying a striping liquid of a thin free-flowing liquid dyestufi to the peripheral surfaces of the disks, rotating said disks at a different peripheral speed with respect to the rate of web travel across said disks, said movement of the fabric web across said disks producing a wiping action and forming stripes running longitudinally of the fabric web and corresponding to the width and spacing of the disks, and immediately thereafter saturating the fabric web with a dyestuif solution that dyes the web a desired color over the entire area thereof except for the striped areas, said dyestuif solution preventing bleeding or migrating of the striping liquid into other areas of the fabric.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS 315,910 Charlesworth Apr. 14, 1885 2,321,974 Bird June 15, 1943 2,359,776 Milne Oct. 10, 1944 

